As the efforts to position the
Nigeria’s agricultural sector to
become one of the leading
players in food production in
world continue, experts have
called on the federal government to tackle the level of wastage of agricultural produce usually experienced from distribution to the marketplace and develop innovative ways to preserve them.

Speaking during the inauguration of Fruits2go café, the Chief Executive Officer of the café, Tosan Kukoyi, said government should focus on the end product value chain, as a lot of wastages are being experienced from the farm to the market.
According to her, the wastage is
huge and government has not
provided facilities to preserve
these agriculture produce.

She also stated that if government encourages more people and provide the necessary support, most of the agricultural produce will be better preserved thereby reduce the reliance on imported foods which she noted is most
preferred by Nigerians despite
the preservatives it contains,
“most of these imported
products contain products that
are not healthy for the body.”

Kukoyi, who stated that there is
need for more people to go into
farming, commended government’s efforts in positioning sector, adding that Nigerians should create innovations regarding ways of preserving and packaging
agriculture products.
Speaking on the café, she said
the cafe was a healthy
alternative to eateries in Lagos
and they are focused on
wholeness, noting that the
products used are locally
sourced in order to provide
space in the healthy food
options segment where every
member of the family can have a
good meal, snack or drink.

Kukoyi said the brand is targeted at children because there are no smoothies’ stores or café targeted children, while stressing that they have taken their services a step further to schools to package healthy lunch for school pupils.
She added: “The school
authorities have also given us
the opportunity to talk with the
parents of these kids on the
importance of eating right and
not compromising with the
cheaper alternatives that are in
the market.

Parents are excited to bring their children here because of what we are offering such as the popsicles
which looks like ice-cream, but
it is made from pineapple fruits
and other fruit addition. The
parents of these pupils reach an
agreement with us and they pay
for the lunch we serve their
pupils, on a term basis.
We have covered two major schools.

“Children love our smoothies
and juices. We are creating
excitement for our customers
and still focused on the core of
the business. We have juices,
and healthy Yogurts made
without preservatives. We only
persevere these Yogurts with
refrigeration. This is the first
branch, but we are looking at
opening four other locations in
2017.

“Government should evaluate
the agricultural value chain, the
players and know where the
challenges are coming from,
then address it. I think the
challenge before the administration facing is
implementation. For private
entrepreneurs, we will try our
best to set the stage, within our
capacity.

The bank is not helping us with the interest rates they are giving. It is difficult if you don’t have funds. There should more credit facilities to encourage entrepreneurs.”